Mercury-pump.



No. 764,204. l PATENTED JULY 5, 190.4. H. N. POTTER.

MERCURY PUMP.

APPLICATION FILED 00T. 9, 1902.

NO MODEL.

uw. anfang- UNITED STATES Patented July 5, 1904.

PATENT OEETCE.

HENRY NOEL POTTER, OF NEV ROCHELLE, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO COOPER HEVITT ELECTRIC COMPANY, A

CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

MERCURY-PUMP.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 764,204, dated July 5, 1904.

Application filed October 9, 1902.

To (all whom, t may concern.-

Be it known that'I, HENRY NOEL POTTER, a citizen of the United States, and a resident ot' New Rochelle, in the county of Testchester and State oi' New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Mercury- Pumps, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in mercury pumps, particularly such as are adapted to create a vacuum of the desired degree otl exhaustion in gas or vapor lamps of the well-known Hewitt type.

The invention relates to various details in the construction and arrangement ot' a mercury-pump apparatus, all of which will be fully described in the speciiication which follows and more particularly pointed out in the claims.

My invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, which is an elevation and part section of an apparatus embodying my improvement.

Referring to the drawing, 1 is a shallow circular reservoir, of iron, having a mercury duct .or trough 2 cast on it in one piece. The reservoir lis covered by a glass dome-shaped cover 3, and the duct 2 may also have a cover. At intervals along the duct 2 are arranged outlet-cocks, one of which is shown in the drawing at 4. The cock 4 consists of a stem 4', screwed into a valve-seat 5. Upon opening the cock mercury iiows from the duct or trough 2 into fall-tubes 6 7. To the fall-tubes are attached by rubber corks and mercuryseals a lamp 8 and a connection 8' to a mechanical air-pump 9. The long vertical portion of the fall-tube (shown at 7) ends inside a cup 10, having a flexible outlet-pipe 11, lioining the cup 10 at about the middle oi' its length. The outlet-pipe 11 empties into a general catch-basin 12, to which the outlets of all the pumps lead.

The catch-basin 12 is connected by an outlet-pipe 13 with an inlet-valve 14 of an airtank 15. The valve 14 is normally held closed by a spring 17, as shown.

From near the bottom of the air-tank 15 Serial No. 126,410. (No model.)

runs a pipe 16, which extends into the reservoir 1 and ends above the level of the mercury therein.

Into the top ot' the air-tank 15 runs an airpipe 24, the connection oi' which to a source of compressed-air supply 26 is controlled by an electropneumatic valve 18, operated by a set of dry batteries 19 through the medium of a diving-bell contact 21 22.

The course of the mercury is as follows: From the tank 1 it Hows along the duct or trough 2, through the cock 4 5, down the falltubes 6 7 into the cup 10, through the outlet pipe or tube 111 into the catch-basin 12 and the outlet 13. The mercury accumulates in the catch-basin 12 until it is of suiiicient height above the valve 14 to overcome the action of the spring 17 and open the valve, permitting the mercury to run into the air-tank 15 and gradually filling the latter until such a level is reached as is necessary to complete the circuit of the batteries 19 through the valve 18. When this happens, the valve operates and allows compressed air to enter the air-tank 15 through the pipe 24. This air, pressing' down upon the surface of the mercury in the tank, instantly closes the valve 14 and forces the mercury through the pipe 16 up into the reservoir 1. This operation continues until the circuit oi' the valve 18 is broken, whereupon,the supply oi' compressed air being interrupted, the flow of the mercury through the pipe 16 ceases.

The action of the valve 18 when it is restored to the position Where it shuts ofi' the supply of compressed air from the pipe 24 also opens a vent in the said pipe, thereby releasing the compressed air above the mercury in the tank 15 and allowing the column of mercury in the tube 16 to fall to the level of that in the tank 15. While the compressed air has thus been forcing the mercury from the tank 15 into the reservoir 1 the pumps have continued to cause mercury to iow from the reservoirs, and the same has collected in the catch-basin 12. Upon the removal of the air-pressure, as described above, the valve 14 reopens by reason oi' the pressure of the accumulated mercury in the catch-basin, and the latter empties into the tank 15. Undei` the proper conditions the described series of operations repeats itself, and the lamps 8 are gradually brought to the desired state of eX- haustion.

The diving-bell 21 22 is of peculiar construction and is adapted to open the valve 18 when the mercury in the air-tank 15 is high and to close it when the mercury is low. The diving-bell consists of a contact-terminal 22, passing through an insulating-packing 23 in the top or cover 45 of the tank 15, and an airtight bell or cylinder 21, which projects below the level of the conductor 22, but ends above the bottom of the tube 16. When the mercury in the tank 15 rises above the bottom of the bell 21 on the outside thereof, the mercury inside the bell will not rise as rapidly, owing to the air confined within the bell. It will be understood that the binding-post 60, which is connected to one side of the battery 19, is not insulated from the tank 15 and that the mercury in the tank will therefore complete an electric circuit as soon as it rises far enough to touch the conductor 22. Eventually, however, the mercury inside the bell will make contact with the conductor 22, and the valve 18 will be opened to turn on the air. The resulting increase of pressure outside the bell 21 will force the mercury up inside the bell, continuing the contact between the mercury and the conductor 22. This contact will continue until the level of the mercury outside tlie bell 21 descends below the lower edge ofthe said bell, whereupon bubbles of air will rise inside the bell, the mercury therein will flow out, the connection with the conductor 22 will be broken, the valve 18 will be closed, and the air will be shut off.

From the foregoing it is clear that the point at which the air is admitted by the closure of the circuit of the valve 18 is determined by the distance of the lower end of the conductor 22 above the bottom of the bell 21 and that the point at which the air is cut o1 by the restoration of the valve 18 through the breaking of its circuit is determined by the distance between the bottom of the bell 21 and the bottom of the tank 15. It is also clear that both these distances can be adjusted, the first by drawing up the conductor 22 or pushing it down inside its packing 23 and the second by means of the screw connection between the bell 21 and the tank top or cover 45.

The tank 15 is provided with the top 15 for convenience in inspecting' the parts within the airtank and providing for their possible removal or renewal. The top overhan gs the tank and is supported by a suitable benchLG. All the valves, pipes, and contacts, and also the bottom portion of the tank itself are attached to the top 15. The tank can be taken away without interfering with the parts attached to the top by simply removingl the screws 47 4:7, which join the two parts mentioned.

I claim as my invention 1. In a mercury-pump, a tank included in the mercury-circuit, a riser leading from the said tank, and an air-pressure pipe leadinginto the tank, in combination with an electricallyoperated valve controlling the passage of the air in the said pipe, and a diving-bell contact device controlling the operating-circuit of the valve.

2. In a mercury-pump, a tank included in the mercury-circuit, a riser leading from the said tank to the source of mercury-supply, and an air-pressure pipe leading into the tank, in combination with an electrically-operated valve controlling the passage of air in the said pipe, a circuit-controller for the said valve-eircuit, consisting of an inverted cup or bell, and a terminal within the same, the terminal ending at a point above the bottom of the cup or bell, together with a second terminal in contact with the mercury in said tank.

3. In a mercury-pump, a tank included in the mercury-circuit, a riser leading from the said tank to the source of mercury-supply, and an air-pressure pipe leading into the tank, in combination with an electrically-operated valve controlling the passage of air in the said pipe, and a circuit-controller for the said valve-circuit, consisting of an inverted cup or bell and a terminal within the same, at least one of the parts named being adjustable and the terminal ending at a point above the bottom of the cup or bell, together With a second terminal in contact with the mercury in said tank.

1. In a mercury-pump, a tank included in the mercury-circuit, a riser leading from the said tank to a point above the source of mercury-supply, in combination with an electrically-operated valve controlling the air-pressure in a pipe leading into the tank, and a IOO circuit-controller for the said valve-circuit,

consisting of a circuit-terminal in contact with HENRY NOEL POTTER.

Vitnesses:

WVM. H. OAPEL, GEORGE H. STOCKBRIDGE.

IlO 

